Wish You Weren't Here
by RoxxiSanders
Summary: Lexxi is the new girl at the crime lab and she's hiding a secret but when her past is exposed, who will stick by her? Meanwhile, can Greg ever get used to the fact that Lexxi is there to stay? Better summary inside. T for language and violence later on.


**DISCLAIMER: **I own nothing and am making no profit from this so please don't sue me :)

**SUMMARY:** Lexxi Seymour is the new girl at the Las Vegas crime lab; she is also the replacement for Aimee Clark, Greg's best friend. Aimee left Vegas and moved to London to be with someone else, breaking Greg's heart in the process and now he has to try and get used to her replacement. Greg immediately takes a dislike to Lexxi and tells her that she will never take the place of his former best friend but when she is assigned to tutor him during his training to become a CSI, he tries to get her to leave Vegas. He purposely winds her up and treats her like dirt in the hope that she will leave and Aimee will come back but when this doesn't work, he realises that he'll have to try harder. He spots his chance when Grissom and Catherine arrange a weekend stay in a haunted house for Halloween but will his plan work or will Greg realise just how childish he is being?

**A/N:** Imagine that Lexxi had been the one that had tutored Greg when he was training to become a CSI. Aimee and Lexxi are my characters so I am well aware that they have never worked with the CSIs. Greg is only twenty six in this story. I made up the stuff about Wendy and Archie and have changed their ages slightly in this story. This is also imagining that Warrick hasn't died.

**WARNING: **Contains some swearing and violence.

**TITLE:** Wish You Weren't Here

_**** - CSI – CSI – CSI – CSI- ****_

Chapter 1 – New Beginnings and Bitter Ends

6 Months earlier

"Lexxi? Lexxi, you left for work yet?" Christopher Kent searched the apartment, trying to find his girlfriend of seven months. "Lexxi?" He walked into the kitchen to find her mopping the floor, loud rock music blaring from her iPod. "Lexxi!"

She looked up at him and pulled one of her earphones out, offering him a sheepish smile. "Sorry, got a bit carried away cleaning." Lexxi Seymour was twenty four and a half years old and had been born and raised in Oklahoma. She was a relatively quiet person but her music taste was somewhat different to her personality. She had long, black, curly hair and sparkly hazel eyes. She wasn't very tall, being five feet and four inches tall and usually wore high heeled shoes to work so that she could appear as tall as some of her female co-workers.

"You don't say." He rolled his eyes and walked over to the refrigerator, getting himself a beer and sitting down at the kitchen table. "It's about time you cleaned this place up." His voice was stern and cold, much like his personality. He was a very strict man and being five years older than Lexxi; he thought that he should be the one to control her. He rarely let her go out with friends and when she answered him back, or did something which he didn't agree with, he would beat her. She had tried to leave him only once and had failed when he had realised what she was up to and locked her in the cupboard for three days with nothing but a bottle of water and two apples. After that, she had stopped planning to leave; too worried about what would happen to her if he found out.

"Yeah, I'm sorry I left it. It's just been so busy at work lately and…" Lexxi was trained in Forensic Science and Criminal Investigation and she was currently working with the Oklahoma Police Department. Christopher had never liked her job or the people with whom she worked and had tried more than once to get her to quit.

"You know how much I hate that place. Why don't you just quit, you could get a better job with better hours…you could spend more time at home." The truth was, she enjoyed the hours away from home because at work, surrounded by police officers, she felt safer.

"I don't want a better job, I love the job I have now." He glared at her and she raised her eyebrows, making him annoyed. He had a very short fuse and hot temper which usually ended in violence.

"Yeah but I don't and you're real job in life is to make me happy." He smirked at her and she looked at him helplessly.

"No it isn't." Her voice was soft and she immediately regretted what she had just said. He didn't say anything at first and she hoped that he hadn't heard her but her hopes were crushed when he stood up and walked over to her.

"What did you just say?" His voice was low and sinister in her ear and she wished that she could take it back. He had recently been suspended from work for hitting a colleague and for the past few days, he had been more short tempered and violent than usual. "I asked you a question Lexxi!"

She shook her head and looked down at the floor. "It doesn't matter, I didn't mean it."

He grabbed her hair and forced her to look up at him, anger flaring in his eyes. "Look at me when I'm talking to you!"

"I'm sorry I…" He cut her off with a slap across the face and then threw her to the floor as she looked up at him in shock.

"Listen you selfish little bitch, I'm in charge around here and as long as you live under my roof…you play by my rules!" He screamed at her and she tried to sit up, only to receive a swift kick in the stomach.

"Chris, why are you doing this?" She looked up at him with pleading eyes as she wrapped her arms around her stomach.

"Because I can!" She tried to stand up again and he grabbed her wrist, dragging her to her feet.

"Stop it, you're hurting me!" He threw her against the wall and pinned her arms to her sides so that she couldn't fight back. "Chris, let me go!"

"Stop fighting me, we all know who's going to win." He slapped her across the face again and released her but rather than falling to the floor, she ran into the living room, trying desperately to grab the telephone. This time she had had enough and she knew that she needed to get out. He followed her into the living room and knocked the phone out of her hand. "Don't bother." He shoved her to the floor and she hit her head on the coffee table, causing her to yelp in pain.

"Chris, please don't do this." He said nothing, just sneered and straddled her hips.

She looked up at him with wide eyes as he tried to undo the buttons on her blouse. "Come on baby, you want this as much as I do." She struggled against him and he slapped her again. "I said stop it, you little whore!" Hot, salty tears fell down her face as she tried to pull away from him.

"Please, just let me go." She whispered through her tears and he smirked, telling her that it was all her fault.

"Don't fight this, we both know that it's your job to make sure I'm happy." She squirmed and sobbed but he didn't release his grip. "You belong to me Lexxi, you're mine and I can do what I want with you, when I want." She gagged as he forced his lips upon hers, telling her that she deserved everything she was getting.

"Chris, just let me go…I swear I won't tell anyone what happened." She pleaded with him again but he was more focused on undoing her buttons.

"Now where's the fun in that?" Lexxi looked into his cold eyes and realised that begging wouldn't work.

Instead she decided to play along and tried to put on the most seductive voice she could muster to trick him into releasing her. "You're right, you…you're absolutely right; sod work today…I wanna spend all day in bed with you. I've been a naughty girl and you're gonna have to punish me."

His eyes lit up and he released his grip slightly. "There's a good girl and I'd love to teach you a lesson." She internally gagged but plastered a fake smile on her lips.

"Get off me, I wanna start on the sofa…not the floor." He fell for it and climbed off her then stood up and held his hand out to her. She took it and stood up but then turned and kneed him as hard as she could in the crotch. He screamed in pain and doubled over as she started to run for the door. He gave chase and grabbed her before she could make it so she kicked backwards, happy when she connected with his leg. He gasped and released her waist so she ran for the kitchen but slipped on her newly cleaned floor and landed with a thud. He limped in after her and panicking, she got to her knees and opened one of the drawers then grabbed one of the kitchen knives.

"Don't even think about it!" She gasped as he tried to grab the knife off her. He too slipped and they both ended up fighting over the knife on the kitchen floor. He twisted Lexxi's wrist slightly and she slit her arm, wincing at the pain and staring in horror as the blood started to drip down her skin. They fought with each other for a while longer and Lexxi finally pulled the knife away from him as he scrambled for something to hit her with. She stood up and was about to run for the door when she felt someone stood behind her; she whirled around just as he was about to hit her over the head with a plate and in one final bid to defend herself, she thrust the knife into his chest and twisted. He doubled over and fell to the floor as she watched the china plate fall and shatter beside him, landing in the pool of blood which was slowly seeping out of his limp body.

"Oh my God! Chris?" She knelt down next to him, using a cloth and applying pressure in an attempt to stop the bleeding. "Chris? Come on, speak to me. I'm so sorry…I didn't…" She trailed off as sobs overtook her. He didn't move so she stood up and ran into the living room then snatched up the phone and dialled for an ambulance.

Chris was dead by the time the ambulance got there and she was questioned as to what had happened. A couple of months later, she was in court waiting for a verdict. The spokesperson for the jury stood up and Lexxi braced herself for their response. "We find Lexxi Seymour not guilty; we see the act as self defence." Lexxi breathed a sigh of relief when she heard the Judge agree with the jury but that didn't lessen her crime in her opinion. She still had nightmares about that morning and no matter how hard she tried to show how sorry she was, all of Christopher's friends looked at her like she was a murderer and one of them kept threatening her. Three weeks after the trial, she decided to leave Oklahoma, no longer feeling safe in her own home.

_**** - CSI – CSI – CSI – CSI- ****_

Present Day

"Miss Seymour, welcome to the Las Vegas Crime Lab." Grissom welcomed her to the team but put Catherine in charge of showing her around. "Cath, show her where the locker room is and then take her to the break room." Catherine nodded and led Lexxi out of Grissom's office then down a corridor.

"So Lexxi, newest recruit huh?" Lexxi nodded and smiled, nobody in Vegas, except the people who had reviewed her application, knew about what had happened to Chris. She had asked them not to tell anybody; worried that if people knew, she would never be treated like a normal human being ever again. "Well, this is the locker room." Catherine opened the door and Lexxi walked in, followed by Catherine. "Nothing particularly interesting about it." Just as Catherine had said that, Warrick appeared from around the corner of the room; startling them both. "Jeez Warrick, what are you trying to do…give me a heart attack?"

Warrick smiled and gave a light chuckle. "Sorry Cath, didn't know you were in here." He looked at Lexxi then back at Catherine, a curious expression on his face. "So Cath, who's your friend?"

Catherine turned to look at Lexxi then back at Warrick. "Warrick, this is Lexxi Seymour…our newest CSI."

Warrick nodded and offered her a small smile. "Aimee's replacement?" Catherine nodded and Warrick offered his hand out to Lexxi. "I'm Warrick Brown, nice to meet you."

"Thanks, pleasure to meet you too." He gave her one last smile then bid them goodbye as he had to get back to work. "He seems nice." Lexxi looked up at Catherine and she nodded.

"Yeah, you'll get on with Warrick…he's a great guy." Lexxi nodded and Catherine led her out of the locker room and towards the break room. She held the door open for her and Lexxi walked in to find Nick rummaging through the refrigerator and moaning about how his yoghurt had gone missing. "Nick?" He tried to get up and banged his head on the roof of the fridge as Lexxi and Catherine simultaneously winced.

"Hey Cath, don't suppose you've seen Warrick have you?" He stood up and turned to face her, eyebrows raised and annoyance written all over his face.

"Why, what's he done this time?" Catherine gave a small laugh and Nick sighed.

"Dude stole my yoghurt…again." Lexxi couldn't help the laugh that escaped her lips and Nick noticed that Catherine wasn't alone. "Hey, this Aimee's replacement?" Catherine nodded and Nick walked over to her and offered her his hand. "I'm Nick, Nick Stokes."

"Hi, I'm Lexxi Seymour." He nodded and shook her hand then released it and looked at Catherine.

"So, you seen him?" He was determined to track him down and he rocked backwards and forwards on his heels, waiting for Catherine's answer.

"Yeah, he said something about heading over to Greg's lab."

Nick thanked her and rushed for the door but then turned back to face them. "Nice meeting you Lexxi." She nodded and told him likewise whilst Catherine told Nick that he didn't hear about Warrick's whereabouts from her. He simply nodded and hurried out of the room.

Catherine then looked at Lexxi and just as she was about to open her mouth, Catherine answered the question she knew that Lexxi was going to ask. "Yeah, he's always like that." Lexxi smiled and nodded, content on letting Catherine lead her out of the break room and down the corridor once more. "I'll introduce you to Greg before I show you where the morgue is." Lexxi nodded once again, musing to herself that if she kept nodding she would give herself whiplash. They walked down the corridor until Catherine stopped in front of a glass door. She held the door open and Lexxi walked in to find Greg spinning on his chair and listening to what Catherine guessed was Marilyn Manson. "Greg?" He stopped spinning and had to grab the table to stop himself from falling off his chair. Lexxi let out another small laugh and Catherine rolled her eyes as Greg straightened up.

"Hey Cath, to what do I owe the pleasure." She laughed and rolled her eyes again before stepping aside to reveal Lexxi.

"I wanted to introduce you to the new girl, this is Lexxi Seymour." He looked up and nodded then slid over to the table to sort out the DNA sample which he had promised Warrick a couple of hours earlier.

"Lovely." His voice was indifferent and Catherine looked at him with raised eyebrows.

"What's the matter with you, I thought you'd be pleased to meet her." Greg shook his head and Catherine looked down at Lexxi who smiled sadly. "Lexxi, can you go and wait for me in the corridor I just need a word with Greg."

"Sure." Catherine smiled at her and Lexxi left the lab.

When Catherine looked out onto the corridor, she was happy to see that Lexxi was stood talking to Archie from the AV lab. Satisfied that Lexxi couldn't hear her, she turned to face Greg, an angry glare on her face. "What the hell are you playing at?"

He turned to face her with sad eyes. "Look, maybe you've been taken in by her but I won't be. I still haven't forgotten about Aimee, she was one of the best CSIs this lab has ever had and you lot just let her walk away. Now you want me to what…play nice to her replacement?" His words were laced with slight sarcasm and a lot of hurt.

"Of course I don't but you could at least be civil to her, you don't know her. Just give her a chance Greg." He shook his head again and she raised her eyebrows.

"I can't forget about Aimee and every time I look at her, all I'm gonna see is Aimee." Her eyes softened and she walked over to him, leaning against the table. "I miss her." Greg's voice came out in a whisper and Catherine smiled softly at him.

"I know you do but it'll get easier and you can't blame Lexxi for Aimee leaving. Aimee left because she wanted to move to London…she wanted to be with Brent and you couldn't change that." The anger had dissipated now and all that remained was understanding.

Greg sighed and looked up at Catherine. "I know that but it doesn't make it any easier. She was my best friend Catherine and nobody can replace her."

"Nobody's trying to replace her Greg, Lexxi's the new CSI but that doesn't mean that we're all gonna forget about Aimee."

"Well either way, don't expect me to be so accommodating. I'll be civil but I won't patronise her by pretending to be her friend. I don't wanna get to know her…I'll do her DNA samples but that's where it ends." Catherine sighed and shook her head. "I mean it Cath."

"Fine, just be civil…remember, she hasn't done anything wrong." He nodded and she left the lab, there was no point trying to change his mind when he was in that kind of mood.

"Okay, see you later Archie." Catherine walked up behind Lexxi who was waving to Archie as he walked backwards down the corridor and straight into Ecklie. Lexxi laughed and Catherine put a hand on her shoulder.

"What was all that about?" She had a smile gracing her lips; if Greg wasn't going to be friendly to Lexxi, she'd have to be doubly nice to make up for it.

Lexxi turned to face her, a grin on her face. "I'm going for a drink after work tomorrow with Archie and Wendy." Catherine smiled and nodded, glad that Lexxi had at least found a friend in Archie. Archie Johnson was one of the nicer lab techs, as was Wendy and then there were the less accommodating ones such as Hodges and Bobby. As for Greg, Catherine didn't know which band to place him in.

"That's good, see you're starting to make friends already." Lexxi simply nodded, hoping that she would make some more before the evening was out.

_**** - CSI – CSI – CSI – CSI- ****_

The next evening everyone was surprised when Hodges walked into the conference room with some trace results for Lexxi. "Guys, is Lexxi in here?"

Grissom looked at him and shook his head, Lexxi had gone in search of Archie five minutes ago. "Nope, she went looking for Archie, said something about needing an ID from the surveillance tape she'd found." Grissom sipped his coffee before looking up at the lab tech. "Can I help?"

"No, I umm…I need Lexxi; I have her results." At that precise moment, the CSI in question walked in and Hodges smiled at her. "Lexxi, just the person I'm lookin' for."

She smiled at him. "Hodges, yes?"

"I have your results." He handed her a print out and she scanned the piece of paper then looked at him.

"Are you serious?" He nodded and she looked at the piece of paper again, a confused expression gracing her features. She was silent for a minute or two and then suddenly she smacked her palm against her forehead. "Of course, the neighbour had an Egyptian Mau." Everyone looked at her and she smiled. "Sorry, I'll see you guys later." She walked out of the room then turned and walked back in. "Thanks Hodges, you just broke my case wide open again." She wrapped her arms around his waist and, once he had gotten over the shock, he wrapped his around her shoulders. When she pulled away, she gave him a bright smile and left the room, leaving a very confused set of CSIs and an exceedingly smug Hodges.

"What the hell just happened there?" Nick looked up at Hodges, a shocked expression on his face.

"I just received a hug from the new girl." Hodges sat down in the chair which had been put there for Lexxi.

"Yeah I know that but how? Did you bribe her or something?" This earned a laugh from Warrick and Sara whilst Catherine tried to hide a chuckle by pretending to cough.

"Did it ever occur to you that maybe she likes me?" They all remained silent and Sara shook her head. "Look, she's new and she had no friends here so I tried to be especially nice to her."

Grissom smiled at him and nodded. "Well, that's very thoughtful of you Hodges."

"I know what it's like to be new…to have no friends." He looked around the room, making Nick feel slightly guilty. "I hated it and she seems really nice so…I thought I'd give her a friend."

They all apologised for being so mean, except for Grissom who actually admitted to being proud of Hodges for being so grown up. "Well we'd better get back to work and Hodges, thanks for looking after Lexxi." Hodges nodded and then Grissom and the rest of the team left the room.

_**** - CSI – CSI – CSI – CSI- ****_

When shift had finished, Lexxi, Wendy and Archie had gone to a bar for a few drinks before heading home. They were sat at a table, Lexxi and Wendy drinking vodka and Lemonades and Archie drinking a bottle of cider when Greg walked in and sat down on a stool near the bar. "So anyway I said…is that Greg?"

Wendy laughed at what she thought was the punch line to Archie's joke then stopped abruptly. "I don't get it."

Lexxi agreed and Archie shook his head. "No, I mean is that Greg?" They all looked over to the bar and Lexxi and Wendy nodded.

"Yeah it is, I need to talk to him actually. I'll be back in a minute, it's my round too; same again guys?" She looked at them all with raised eyebrows.

"Yeah, can you get me a straw…Archie keeps forgetting." Lexxi told her that she wouldn't forget and Wendy smiled at her. "Thank you."

She walked over to the bar and gave the barman her list then turned to look at Greg. "Greg, you got a minute?" He turned his head and looked at her expectantly but said nothing. "Greg, why do you hate me so much?"

"Do we have to have this conversation now?" He sounded like he really couldn't be bothered and Lexxi nodded, demanding to know what she had done wrong. "Look, everyone else might be fooled but I'm not. You will never replace Aimee so don't bother trying."

"I'm not trying to replace Aimee, I needed a job and she'd quit; I didn't make her leave Greg." Lexxi was determined to defend herself and make him see that she was innocent in all of this. "She chose to leave, it's not like I forced her."

"Yeah well, you're never going to be her…you can't compete. You swan in here like 'Little Miss Perfect' and expect everyone to love you but I don't work that way." His voice was cold as were his eyes and she knew that she had her work cut out.

"Look, I know I'll never be her but you don't know me…why don't you just give me a chance?" She looked at him with pleading eyes, all she wanted to do was make friends with him.

"No thanks, I don't need you Lilly." He turned to face the barman, intent on ignoring her.

"It's Lexxi."

"Whatever." She gave an exasperated sigh and he smiled, glad that his plan was working and he was managing to wind her up.

"You know what, fine…I'm sorry I tried to make friends with you. I can see that you'd rather wallow in self pity over the fact that you weren't enough of a reason for her to stay." She picked up a straw then picked up the drinks which the bartender had just set down and turned to walk away. She was about to when she changed her mind and leaned over to whisper to him. "Whatever she did to break your heart, was nothing to do with me." Greg looked down at the bar then back up to look at her but she had already walked away. He turned to see her sitting down at a table with Archie and Wendy and couldn't help but wish that he was sitting over there with them, instead of sitting on his own with nobody but the barman for company.

"You alright Lexxi?" Wendy could tell that something had upset her and she genuinely liked the younger CSI because she knew what it felt like to be new to Vegas. She had moved to Vegas a few months earlier after a nasty split from her boyfriend. She had decided that she wanted a new start and had moved to Vegas when she had seen the job at the crime lab advertised on the internet. She was only two years older than Lexxi so she also thought that maybe Lexxi would open up to her and Wendy had already decided that she would be there to help her if she needed a friend.

"Yeah, you seem a bit…distant." Archie felt the same way; when he had met Lexxi, she had looked lost but when he had asked her out for drinks with him and Wendy, she had cheered up slightly. Archie wasn't much older than Wendy, five months to be exact and he also wanted to be there for the new girl. He had also vowed to look after her for as long as she stayed in Vegas which both he and Wendy hoped would be for a long time.

"It's nothing, I'm fine." Lexxi lied, the truth was that Greg's words had hurt her but she didn't want to say anything to anyone.

"Is it something Greg said to you?" Lexxi looked at Wendy and shook her head but her eyes betrayed her lie and Wendy sighed. "What did he say?"

"It's nothing to do with Greg and besides, he's still upset about Aimee leaving." Lexxi didn't want everyone to fall out with Greg; she knew that if they did, he would hate her even more.

Greg, who had only caught parts of their conversation, looked over at their table and rolled his eyes. Then he climbed off the stool and walked over to them. "You wanna talk about me, fine but at least do it to my face." Lexxi looked up at him, confusion written on her face.

"I wasn't talking about you behind your back." Greg gave a short bitter laugh and Archie looked up at him.

"Dude, stop being so paranoid, Lexxi hasn't done anything and I don't wanna fall out with you but to be honest…you're being ridiculous." Wendy nodded, agreeing with the other lab tech and Greg sighed.

"Why have you all been taken in by her lies?"

"We haven't Greg; she hasn't lied to any of us. Aimee's gone…let it go." Archie's voice wasn't commanding or angry, it was filled with sympathy for the younger man.

"I can't, I…I think I loved her Archie." Archie's eyes widened, he hadn't been expecting that reply.

"Oh Greg, I…" Wendy stood up and walked over to him, wrapping her arms around his waist and hugging him tightly. He wrapped one arm around her shoulders and gave her a gentle squeeze. "I'm so sorry Greg; I had no idea that she…" She trailed off and Greg nodded, trying to fight back tears and refusing to cry in front of Lexxi.

When she finally pulled back from him, she looked up and gave him a sympathetic smile. "I'm sorry Wendy but I can't make friends with Lexxi because every time I see her, I see Aimee walking out the door and saying she isn't coming back." He whispered so as not to offend Lexxi further, deciding that she had been through enough verbal abuse for one night.

"I can understand that Greg but you can at least be civil to her, Lexxi hasn't done anything wrong." He nodded and vowed that he would try to be civil, for Wendy that was enough. "Thanks, that's all I ask." She gave him another quick hug then pulled away from him. When she turned to face Lexxi however, she realised that she was heading for the door. "Archie?" She gestured her head towards the door and Archie sighed.

"I'll go and talk to her." Wendy thanked him then sat down at the table, gesturing for Greg to sit down so that they could have a heart-to-heart. Meanwhile, Archie sank down onto the pavement at Lexxi's side. "What was all that about?" She turned to look at him and he noted the tears in her eyes. "Oh come on, don't cry." She said nothing and couldn't stop the tears from falling down her cheeks. "Shh, come on…please don't cry." He leaned over and pulled her into his arms, holding her tightly against his side and whispering soothing words in her ear. When she had quietened down, he pulled back to look at her. "You okay now?" She nodded and he pulled her back against his side, resting his cheek against the top of her head. "So, what was all that about?"

"I just, I can see how close you, Wendy and Greg are and…" She trailed off, tears threatening to fall again.

"We never used to be but I guess we are now. What's your point?" He gently encouraged her, determined to find out what was wrong.

"I don't want him to fall out with you guys because you've been talking to me." Her voice was soft and he had to strain to hear her. "I just don't want him to stop hanging out with you guys because of me but I'm so scared of losing you and…" He gave her a gently squeeze and she stopped talking and looked up at him.

"You won't. Greg isn't like that and if he did stop talking to us because we're friends with you, we wouldn't chase after him." Archie's voice was sincere and she closed her eyes and sighed.

"Exactly, I don't want you guys to fall out." He looked into her eyes and could clearly see the uncertainty.

"We won't, Greg can be very childish but he isn't that bad. You honestly don't need to worry, you're never gonna lose me and Wendy." She snuggled into his chest slightly as he continued to talk. "You're a great person Lexxi and I know what it's like to have no friends because you've just moved. I'm not gonna let you feel like that; no matter what happens…you'll always have me." He placed a kiss to her temple then pulled back to look at her again. "Okay?"

She nodded and smiled at him. "Okay, sorry for being so…I just got worried that…" She trailed off and he smiled reassuringly at her, telling her that that was never going to happen. "I know that now."

"Good and don't go scaring us like that. Vegas isn't the safest place to be walking around on your own at night, especially when you don't know anyone." She gave a small laugh and told him off for lecturing her then he happily responded by telling her that he was lecturing her because he cared. She nodded and fell silent, content on sitting in his arms on the sidewalk. They sat quietly for a few minutes until she shivered slightly. "You wanna go back inside?" She nodded so he pulled away from her and stood up then offered her his hand and helped her to her feet.

They walked, hand-in-hand, back into the bar and joined Wendy who said goodbye to Greg and told him that if he needed anyone to talk to, all he had to do was call her. "Where did you disappear to before madam?" Wendy's tone was teasing and Lexxi laughed slightly.

"I umm…I just…" She tried to think of something to say, not wanting Wendy to know how insecure she really was.

"She just needed some air." Archie helpfully interrupted and Lexxi mouthed a silent 'thank you' to him. He took a few sips from his bottle then looked at Wendy. "I do believe it's your round next Miss Simms."

Wendy rolled her eyes but nodded. "Same again?" They both nodded and she set off for the bar, making a point of draining her glass first. The last time she had been sent to the bar, Archie had finished her drink off for her, telling her that he was doing her a favour. In return she had told him that she would be the one laughing when he woke up with a hangover. Lexxi was contented to just sit and watch her two best friends arguing over who would need the most aspirin in the morning.

_**** - CSI – CSI – CSI – CSI- ****_

The next evening, Lexxi laughed when she heard Archie telling Wendy that she was right. He had indeed woken up that morning needing aspirin because his head had felt like it was going to explode. Wendy meanwhile, danced around his lab telling him, "I told you so!" He merely groaned in response and put his head down on the desk, trying to block her out.

Lexxi smiled to herself and walked down the corridor until Grissom called her into his office. "Is everything alright sir?"

He nodded and smiled before telling her to sit down. "Yes, of course…I just need to wait for Greg to arrive."

Lexxi got a sinking feeling in her stomach when she heard his name. "Why do we have to wait for Greg?"

Just as she had asked her question, Greg walked in and sat down in the chair next to Lexxi. "Grissom, you paged me?"

"Yes, Greg do you still want to train to become a CSI?" Greg eagerly nodded and Grissom smiled. "In that case, find a replacement to take over in the lab and you can start your training."

Greg looked at him, clearly shocked. "Seriously?" Grissom nodded and Greg smiled an enthusiastic smile. "Thank you so much, I'll get right on it." He was about to stand up when Grissom stopped him and he sat back down in his seat.

"Grissom, what does this have to do with me?" Lexxi looked at him, confusion evident on her face.

"Lexxi, you're going to be tutoring Greg." Grissom winced when he heard Lexxi's groan and Greg's cry of horror. They both stormed out of his office without a word and Grissom sighed, it was going to be a very long night.

_**** - CSI – CSI – CSI – CSI- ****_

**A/N:** Thanks for reading guys, you know what to do. Click the little button and let me know what you think, please and thank you.

Luffles and Huggles

Stacee (RoxxiSanders)

XxxoxxX


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